“Positively profound evidence as to why he should not be the GOAT, he’s number 2 all-time” - Stephen A. Smith reacts to LeBron James giving up a clutch layup in the loss to the Houston Rockets
NBA and Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James came under immense criticism. It was after his performance in a loss against the Houston Rockets as the Lakers continued to find new ways to lose games.
On ESPN's morning show First Take, sports media personality Stephen A. Smith spoke about the final play of the game in regulation time. It was one involving LeBron James as King James dished it out to an open Carmelo Anthony instead of finishing at the rim. Smith said:
"When it comes to the GOAT conversation, you’re talking about those moments where you say to other people, ‘move the hell out the way. Let me close this for you so we can go the hell home.’ That’s not what he did last night. That is absolutely, positively profound evidence as to why he should not be the GOAT, he’s number 2 all-time."
While LeBron didn't finish at the rim, what should also be kept in mind is that the he had two defenders meeting him at the rim and the wise decision would have been to dish it out to the open man in Carmelo Anthony. LeBron has always tried to make the right plays in clutch moments throughout his illustrious career.
Is LeBron James the GOAT?
When it comes down to the conversation of who the greatest player of all time is, it is pretty clear that it comes down to only two players - LeBron James and Michael Jordan. James came into the league in 2003 as the self anointed "Chosen One" and the heir to Jordan's throne, so much so that he decided to wear the #23 jersey as well.
NBA stat clubs LeBron James is a sole member of:
27000/7000/7000 club
28000/8000/8000 club
29000/9000/9000 club
30000/9000/9000 club
31000/9000/9000 club
32000/9000/9000 club
33000/9000/9000 club
34000/9000/9000 club
35000/9000/9000 club
36000/9000/9000 club https://t.co/1oDo0hM0Gg
James has had an incredible career that has seen him go to the NBA Finals 10 times. He has won four championships and four Finals MVP awards with three different teams. Wherever he goes, that team becomes relevant and becomes a championship contender.
For his career, James is averaging 27.1 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists while shooting the ball better than 50% from the field and nearly 35% from beyond the arc. Not only can he put the ball in the net at will, he also improves the players around him by getting them open looks. He has sometimes been described as a combination of Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson.
LeBron James finished with 56 pts & 10 rebs in the Lakers' 124-116 win over the Warriors.
At age 37, he is oldest player in NBA history to record at least 55 pts & 10 rebs in a game.
He's also the 1st Laker with a 55-10 game since Shaquille O'Neal in March 2000. https://t.co/yik81ys8Wd
You can never really compare eras because of the different rules and the difference in the way the game was played. This means that making comparisons between Jordan and James can sometimes prove impossible. The pair also never got to play against each other, which also makes it harder to determine who the better player is.
With that being said, calling LeBron James the GOAT isn't unsubstantiated at all, especially when almost every major statistical category backs your claim.